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                          JeffNEWS, August 1, 1995
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Lessons, Compliments of Patients
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Because Jefferson wants to continue to grow and prosper as a leader in 
health care, we must keep our patients satisfied.

In a recent issue of Facilities Planning News, executive editor Steve
Westfall wrote an hour-by-hour rundown of his experiences as a hospital 
patient. We've selected highlights from his editorial so that Jeffersonians 
involved in patient care can use what happened during his stay to compare how 
well we stack up.

o Frantic to get Mr. Westfall to surgery on time, technicians performed only 
a hemoglobin test on his blood sample. Hospital staff also bypassed getting a 
doctor's approval of his EKG. Remember, cutting corners when pressed for time 
doesn't inspire great confidence in patients and could be dangerous if staff 
aren't aware of important medical information about the patient.

o Each time Mr. Westfall came in contact with a nurse, technician or other 
healthcare staff member, he was asked his doctor's name, what procedure he was 
in the hospital for and on which eye. He was reassured to know that the 
hospital staff was conscientious about checking a patient's identity and clear 
on which procedure to do on what part of him. On the other hand, the number of 
questions asked by each person made Mr. Westfall think that no one read his 
chart or that these types of mistakes had been made in the past. 

Au contraire, Mr. Westfall. The staff in this case was doing the right 
thing. Always ask, don't assume you know everything about a patient, but you 
might apologize to patients by saying "I'm sorry to have to ask you once 
again..."

o Once when Mr. Westfall pressed his call button, no one responded. When he 
did get a nurse to answer his call for pain medication, the nurse then went 
off duty, forgot about him and never returned. Remember, a careless word or 
indifferent behavior can ruin a customer relationship forever. Patients may 
not speak up right away, but they know what good customer service is and 
they'll tell others. Let's make sure what patients tell others about Jefferson 
is how we treated them with compassion, sensitivity and respect. 

While Mr. Westfall's editorial featured his interactions with doctors and 
nurses, there are lessons in his article for the rest of us Jeffersonians who 
may not deal directly with patients. 

o Identify yourself when speaking to patients on the phone. When greeting 
them in person, a warm smile and friendly "hello" make patients feel welcome 
and can start the encounter off on the right foot.

o Be aware of what you say in elevators and other places where patients or 
visitors can overhear. Patients want to know that we're not too busy or too 
distracted to care for them. Loose talk can hurt confidence and 
confidentiality. Of course it's never acceptable to talk about a patient's 
medical secrets in public places, but overhearing other inappropriate topics 
of conversation can cause patients great distress.


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Information provided by:  Editor, JeffNEWS
                          (215) 955-6204
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